


Don't Carry It All

by astrawberryoctopus



Category: Ookiku Furikabutte | Big Windup!
Genre: Christmas, Domestic, Fluff, Future Fic, M/M, Single Parents, single parent!mihashi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-02
Updated: 2016-01-02
Packaged: 2018-05-11 02:02:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5609644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/astrawberryoctopus/pseuds/astrawberryoctopus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Conflicted about wanting to bring Haruna, his relatively new boyfriend, to the Christmas dinner and not wanting to make Akemi, his 7 year old son, uncomfortable. Single dad Mihashi has a tough decision to make.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Don't Carry It All

If there was one thing that Haruna learned from working in the same team as Mihashi, it was to _never_ underestimate a player by their appearance. He had learned that once they started working together as pitchers and he had dismissed the other because he didn’t look strong enough. Haruna had thought that he would never underestimate someone after watching the potential Mihashi had. 

What started as friendship and rivalry before their season started, ended up into a confession and Haruna asking Mihashi for a date halfway through the season. As their relationship got more serious, by the end of the season Mihashi confessed to having a child, a small 7 year old. He explained that he didn’t wanted to introduced him until he was sure things were serious and despite feeling a little hurt, Haruna understood. When he asked about a mother, Mihashi had simply said that it was only them and she wasn’t in the picture. 

Haruna had never felt _so much_ respect for Mihashi than that evening when Mihashi explained things and they decided on a date to introduce each other. Mihashi wanted to introduce him soon since the holiday season was close and wanted Haruna to attend their dinner.  

So they set the day, one of their few day off from practice to go have lunch at the park together. It was a place that the Akemi knew and was comfortable around. He specially _loved_ the swings and playing catch with him, Mihashi had explained.

When the day came, Mihashi brought the food he cooked for them in a basket with a blanket and a baseball ball. They were suppose to meet there at noon to eat and then play in the park. It was all planned in detail. Mihashi wanted things to work and Haruna was excited (and terribly _nervous_ because he had never been really good with kids) to finally meet the child. 

Haruna arrived to the park where Mihashi was looking out for Akemi 10 minutes after, making a quick apology about traffic being really bad. Mihashi shrugged it off and then told him to sit down. A minute of silence as now both looked at the small blond child that was on the swings, Mihashi finally said. “Are you ready?”

With a reassuring smirked, Haruna nodded and then said, “I’ve been ready since _forever_.”

Mihashi gulped nervously, unsure but also really excited for them to meet. Haruna was a good guy and he was sure that Akemi would like him, _eventually_. He was slow to warm up to people, after all, just like he was when he was younger. His nerves must had been showing he mused as he felt Haruna’s hand give him a reassuring squeeze so he smiled up at Haruna and nodded. 

“Akemi! Come here! I want you to meet someone!” Mihashi slipped his hand away from Haruna after calling his child. First he needed to introduced him, he didn’t need to know they were dating at that time. 

Akemi, a lanky dark brunet with his father’s hazel eyes, quickly jumped from the swing and ran toward his father. When he noticed the other men, he took a shy step back. Even after being told to sit down with them so they could eat lunch, the boy remained wary and refused to sit down. 

“This is Haruna Motoki,” Mihashi then said, “we’re in the same team. He’s a pitcher _too_!”

Haruna extended his hand to shake with the most welcoming smile he could muster. After his father’s encouragement,  Akemi slowly and shyly extended his hand and held Haruna’s. He didn’t even shook it properly before he quickly took it back. 

The boy then slowly sat down, close to his father, on the opposite side of Haruna. He remained quiet, his feet close to his chest, wrapped around his arms. 

The rest of the lunch was similar, despite Mihashi’s attempts to make them talk Akemi only said a few words to Haruna. After a couple attempts he decided to not push the boy and they ate in almost silence. Haruna and Mihashi making small talk once in awhile to fill the silence and maybe show Akemi that Haruna wasn’t a scary men. 

Once they finished, Mihashi  suggested them to play catch to lighten up things and hoping his child felt more comfortable around Haruna. He wasn’t expecting them to get along quickly, after all Akemi was a shy kid, _specially_ to strangers. Mihashi hadn’t been too disappointed on how things were going as it was going just as he expected. Haruna on the other hand, look disappointed that they hadn't clicked. 

“Give him some time,” Mihashi said to Haruna soft enough so Akemi didn’t heard. “It takes him a while to warm up to people.”

Haruna nodded, surprised that Mihashi had noticed he was disappointed. Mihashi nodded too and gave him a reassuring smile to then follow his child toward the empty field where they were going to play. He had a rather big mitt on his hand and the ball on the other. 

At first Akemi mainly kept throwing back to Mihashi, even though they were suppose to go in a circle, but slowly and surely Akemi looked more comfortable around him. Whenever Haruna talked to him, Akemi would answer with more than just a one word answer and he threw the ball back to Haruna more. 

They continued throwing back and forth until the sun started to go down. It was then that Mihashi suggested them to stop for the day. Akemi complained once that they could continue just for a little bit longer that there would be lights on but Mihashi insisted for them to go back. 

“He sounds _exactly_ like you when the catcher tells you that it’s enough pitches for the day,” Haruna laughed when they started picking up their things. 

Mihashi blushed, wanting to retort but being unable to because it was true. 

Once everything was ready, Mihashi called for Akemi to come so they could go. Reluctantly he ran toward them. 

“Say goodbye to Haruna, Akemi.” Mihashi said, pushing him just a little as encouragement. 

“By-bye, Haruna…” He said after a brief moment of silence. After glancing at his dad once he then added while looking at the ground. “Thank you for...playing catch...with...me.”

Haruna smiled brightly and extended his hand for him to shake. “My pleasure! I hope we do this again.” He waited for a reply but it soon became obvious that none was coming. So he said his goodbyes and started walking toward his car on the opposite direction. 

Mihashi and Akemi started toward the car in silence until it was broke by Mihashi. “So, did you had fun?”

Akemi noded but said nothing.

“How did you like Haruna?” Mihashi asked, trying to sound casual and not let his worry show. He wanted an honest answer and didn’t wanted to pressure him into saying he liked him if he didn’t. 

Akemi remained silent for a while, thinking over his answer and then shrugged. “He was...alright..”

That made absolutely no sense to Mihashi but he didn’t ask for a clarification. Did he liked him or was it just not wanting to say he didn’t really liked him out of fear. Mihashi swallowed his worry and try with another question. “Would you like to play with him again?”

“I _guess_.” he replied, opening the door to the car while Mihashi threw everything on the back. Mihashi nodded and walked to the driver’s seat. He told Akemi to put his seat belt on, put his on and then started the car.

The ride back home consisted of Akemi talking about different things and MIhashi nodding to everything, every once in awhile commenting on something he said or humming as a way of reply. His mind however, was on his son’s answers, that didn’t helped him figure out how much he had liked Haruna and he was unsure of whether to schedule another day for them to talk or not. 

Maybe one more time, he decided. The Christmas party was coming soon and as much as he  wanted Haruna to come to it and have their first Christmas together, he wanted to make it was okay with Akemi. First he would have to suggest it sometime and see what he thought. 

It was two days later, while Mihashi was picking him up from practice that he decided to suggest the idea. First he asked about his practice and how it had gone. Akemi instantly light up with happiness, telling him how he have had so much fun (like he _always_ did), and told him it was _hard_ but he was _really_ enjoying baseball. Mihashi smiled softly at him and told him he was glad. He _really_ was happy that he was having so much fun and enjoy baseball as much as he did. 

Akemi continued on talking about practice and asking baseball-related question until they were halfway to their house. He was such a _chatterbox_ sometimes, it was hard to believe how shy he got around people he barely knew. That thought seemed to remind him about Haruna so when the child finished telling him about his day he asked. 

“So, you know how we’re having the Christmas party on the 25th, right?” He started tentatively. 

“Yes! We’re having dinner and then I’m going to sleep so Santa can bring presents!”

Mihashi nodded and smile fondly at him. He had a plan for ‘Santa’ to come in and help him with the presents that night and leave some evidence for him to find. Akemi always sneaked out from bed despite his warnings to at least have a peak of Santa. There was always a friend who helped him by being Santa so Akemi could see both him and Santa and not suspect a thing and it had worked so far. However as Akemi became older, it quickly became harder to not get caught by the very clever boy. 

“So, what do you think of my friend Haruna joining us this year?” He finally asked. 

The car became quiet after the question, Akemi looking at him before looking at the car floor, unsure and nervous. He look conflicted, like he didn’t know what to respond. Like he didn’t know what the correct answer was. 

“ _Only_ if you want to, sweetie” He added. “He doesn’t need to come if you don’t feel like it.”

“He can come, papa…” He finally said. But Mihashi didn’t felt any better with that answer. He didn’t sounded sure or comfortable. It just sounded like he was saying it to make _him_ happy. And maybe he was being overprotective, but he never wanted to put his child on a uncomfortable situation much less on a special occasion where he wanted him to feel the happiest. 

“Alright,” he said smiling at him. “We’ll see then.” 

The conversation shifted again toward baseball and his practice in an attempt to ease up the mood. It was almost funny how much it had work. It seemed like there was nothing Akemi loved more than baseball and he felt so happy every time. 

In his mind he thought how maybe bringing Haruna was not the best of choices. They had just met and the day was fast approaching. They haven’t even been dating for a year yet, maybe he was rushing things after all. This wasn’t something he could rush through, it had to be done properly. 

He had been called overprotective many times, but he was doing the best he could and trying to figure out when it was appropriate to introduce the man you’re dating to your son was not something he thought he would have to do. After everything that happened, he _never_ thought he would fall in love again and yet Haruna came around and thing started to get worryingly serious. So it only felt appropriate for them to meet. But Christmas was different and a special day and he didn’t wanted to take that away from Akemi. 

_‘So maybe next year’_ , he thought. Truth be told he was disappointed and sad, he wanted to bring Haruna over and have dinner with him. But he wasn’t going to dwell on that. They could always have another dinner with leftover Christmas food and it could be just as fun, he decided as he pulled over in his spot outside their apartment. 

//

“I uh, I think he’ll be more comfortable...I mean, uh…We can eat dinner leftovers and it’ll be just as fun!” Mihashi finally said. 

Haruna smiled and pulled Mihashi into a hug. “Sure!” And then softer he added, “I understand. It's okay.”

“I'm sorry.”

“Don't be.” Haruna smiled reassuringly. 

//

Being the only child and having moved to another city to pursue his career, Haruna had nowhere to be that Christmas night. Not that he minded much, he wasn't a very festive person to begin with. And while he had been invited to a couple of his teammates Christmas parties after finding out he didn't have a party to go to, he had declined them all. 

So that night, he bought some take out food and watched a movie after calling his family in and saying his greetings. _‘It honestly wasn’t so bad’_ , he thought shrugging. 

It was two movies later that he woke up to his phone ringing. He groaned and sit up from his bed, stretching before he saw the caller ID. It was Mihashi. That seemed to wake him up more, as he answer the call curiously. 

“You answer!” He said first. He sounded relieved and that worried him. 

Before Mihashi could continue talking Haruna quickly asked, “are you okay? Is Akemi okay? What happened?” 

“I’m fine...we’re fine...it’s just,” Mihashi paused and after taking a breather, as if to encourage himself to say whatever he was going to say, then continue. “It's just...I don't want to bother you.”

“ _Tell me_.” 

“I’m sorry. Just. The person that was going to come in to help and be Santa had an emergency and had to cancelled. And, and…”

“I’ll be there in 5.” Haruna quickly interrupted. “You have the Santa costume?” 

“But!” Mihashi tried but was quickly hushed by Haruna. He asked one more time if he had the Santa costume to which he said no. 

“I’ll figure out. Don’t worry.”

Haruna wasn’t entire sure but Mihashi sigh sounded as if he had taken a huge load off his back and he wondered just much he was shouldering on his own. He wouldn’t describe him quite as prideful, he _was_ prideful, but even more than that he was _stubborn_. Stubborn to get things done on his _own_. To not ask for help even if he needed it. It was better than when they had first met, but Mihashi often shoulder more than he could take, believing he could take it all and not necessarily looking out for himself. 

“I’ll meet you at your house in, uh, an hour. Don’t worry.”

After a paused Mihashi sighed again and then whispered such a heartfelt thank you it made his heart flip. 

Half an hour later, Haruna realized that renting a Santa suit would be harder than he thought. What with being Christmas and everything. He asked friends, he called stores, went to stores and everywhere it was sold out or not available. But he had to do it, for Akemi. For _Mihashi_. 

It felt truly like a Christmas miracle when he finally found a Santa suit that was too small on him but he made due with what he had. He texted Mihashi that he was coming over and after another thankful reply he dressed up and drove to Mihashi’s apartment. 

Mihashi told him that he was just putting Akemi to bed and that by the time he arrived to his house he should already had tried to sneak back to watch Santa. It made Haruna smile, from Akemi’s imagination and belief in Santa to how much effort Mihashi put into the whole thing. 

Since he didn’t live that far from where Mihashi lived, he arrived five minutes after they texted and parked outside. There was another car parked by Mihashi’s car and he wondered if he had arrived too early. 

_“I’m outside,”_ he quickly typed. Five minutes later he got a reply to come inside, the door was open and he was in the kitchen. 

It was the first time Haruna had come inside Mihashi’s apartment, all this time he had never let him come even close to it and all this time he was worried about the whole thing. He imagined _a lot_ of scenarios but having a kid was not one of them and to his surprise it was just that. After he told him about Akemi a lot of things started to click, now that he thought about it.  He decided not to dwelle on it too much, Mihashi had his reasons.

“It’s over here,” a voice Haruna didn’t recognize said in a loud whispered.

Haruna followed the voice and was met with a very nervous looking Mihashi and another man he didn’t know. He was grinning at him, looking him up and down in his Santa suit and then laughed. “So this is the _famous_ Haruna Motoki, uh?” 

“Tajima..” Mihashi complained.  

“I still can’t believe you kept _this_ secret away from _me_ ,” Tajima said hurtfully. “You talked about him but you never let me meet him. _Unbelievable_!” And then stepping forward toward Haruna he extended his hand and introduced himself. “Tajima Yuichiro. Mihashi’s best friend. You mess with him, you mess with me, you hear?”

“Tajima,” Mihashi repeated in a whined but said men simply shrugged and looked at Haruna at the eyes as if he was scanning him. It then hit Haruna that it was the _famous_ Tajima Yuichiro, number one rookie baseball player, _Tajima Yuichiro._

“Haruna Motoki,” he finally introduced himself, gripping Tajima’s hand with a tight hold. He gave his best confident grin and then said. “We’re fine so don’t worry about _useless_ things. I would _never_ hurt Mihashi.”

Amused Tajima hummed and gave him a smirk to then laughed, patting him on the shoulder harder than strictly necessarily. “You alright.” And then turning back to Mihashi he waved him goodbye as he started to leave. “I’m _really_ sorry again Mihashi. You know I would stay if I could.”

“I understand,” Mihashi said and waved him goodbye. “I hope he gets better. I’ll visit you tomorrow.”

Tajima nodded, saying one last goodbye before disappearing out of view and soon after they heard the front door close. 

“Thank you for coming over,” Mihashi then said, walking toward Haruna. “It was so last minute...and then I even told you you couldn’t come to the dinner and...you _still_ came.”

“Don’t mention it.” Haruna smiled, pulling Mihashi into a quick peck. “I would drop _everything_ for you, you know.”

 _“I love you,_ ” he whispered. 

It made Haruna heart skip a beat. “ _I love you too._ ”

Mihashi looked away blushing and Haruna smiled and gave him a kiss on the forehead, wishing they could actually stay like that for the night. But this was not a night for himself. So he asked Mihashi what they needed to do and Mihashi walked him to the small living room where they had a medium-sized tree. It was lit up with Christmas light and had all kinds of decorations. 

As it turns out, although Haruna wasn’t really surprised, Mihashi had planned it to the very minor detail. He had worry and thought about every single detail and things Haruna would never even had thought about. So when he asked him for opinions on whether to wrap this present with this wrap paper or what would be more convincing proof that Santa came tonight, Haruna did the best he could to come up with appropriate answer. 

It went on like that until it was past 2 AM in the morning, according to Mihashi they were almost done and Haruna was almost sad that it would all be over so soon. They had talked in whispers as to not wake up the child, but Akemi had given them two false alarms. Just a few minutes ago, he had woken up and tried getting out of his room to take a peek but Mihashi had ran interference. Still Haruna was sure he had saw him and he had only hope he had being convincing enough. 

“It’s getting late,” Mihashi whispered after a long silence of them finishing the presents. 

Even if he wanted to just stay a little longer, wanting to enjoy this moment for as long as he could, he nodded. “Yeah. I guess my job here is done, uh?.” He said grinning. 

“Thank you..” Mihashi said smiling. “You helped me a lot.” Standing up from where he was sitting he looked down at the tree. There were a couple of presents, not a lot but not too little. He hoped that was enough. “Akemi will _love_ this.”

Haruna stood up too and looked at the tree too. It was a modest tree with a couple of presents but it was still a truly _beautiful_ Christmas tree. “If you need me again, don’t hesitate to call.” He said smiling at Mihashi and then starting toward the door. 

The apartment wasn’t too big, it was just big enough for Mihashi and the boy so a few steps away they were already by the entrance. They both linger at the door, neither wanted the other to leave. 

It wasn’t subtle at all, it was sticking out like a sore thumb. It was a coincidence that Haruna had seen it, really, but when he did he broke into a laughter that was soon muffled by Mihashi’s alarmed and confused face. 

“I’m sorry but,” Haruna said trying hard not to laugh. “Lookup.” Taped by the door was a mistletoe, probably courtesy of one Tajima. He liked the guy already. 

As if to confirmed his suspicions, Mihashi groaned Tajima’s name, trying to hide his embarrassment from the other. Still, when Haruna leaned into give him a kiss Mihashi smiled and leaned into it. Haruna’s arms looped around Mihashi as their lips locked in. It wasn’t just a peck but it wasn’t really long either. Mihashi was the first to pull away but he lingered for a little while, looking at his eyes and then smiled. 

“Thank you, Tajima,” Haruna grinned and Mihashi laughed. 

“I’ll call you tomorrow,” Mihashi said and then laughing he corrected himself to later in the afternoon. “Maybe we can have leftover lunch together?” 

“Sounds wonderful.” Haruna nodded. “One for the road?” He asked with a smirk before walking out and Mihashi just couldn’t say no, so he leaned in for a quicker small kiss before Haruna gave him a final hug and left the apartment. 

He truly had a good feeling about Haruna, Mihashi thought as he returned back to where the tree was. And he thought that within time, Akemi would like him too. His thoughts were interrupted with a buzz from his cellphone. It was Haruna. 

_“I had a lot of fun. Thank you for tonight.”_

Mihashi couldn’t had wished for a _better_ Christmas day. 


End file.
